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A year to the day before Natalia Feldman, 44, wound up in handcuffs outside of her Thornhill condo, York Regional Police allege, she was assaulting her partner, 70-year-old Grigori Zaharov, with an ashtray.

Feldman and Zaharov, the alleged diamond thieves suspected in a spree of high-value heists across the country, are each facing one count of theft over $5,000 in New Brunswick and one count of theft over $5,000 in Prince Edward Island. They were arrested on a nationwide warrant outside their condo in the early hours of Oct. 20.

Exactly a year earlier, Feldman was charged with assault with a weapon and wilfully damaging Zaharov’s property — specifically a door and television, whose value exceeded $5,000. She was also charged with an assault against Zaharov that allegedly occurred 10 days prior to that, using a mug as a weapon. All of the charges were withdrawn, but court documents indicate Feldman received two years of probation and had to pay a $200 fine within six months.

Feldman faced assault charges in 2008, 2009 and 2010 — all of which were withdrawn. The Star could not ascertain who these assaults were allegedly against.

Zaharov’s own history with legal trouble goes back to the early ’90s.

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In 1992, he was convicted of possession of housebreaking instruments. Court records show police found six pairs of surgical gloves, a “jimmy” tool, lock picks, a bent clothes hanger, two bolt cutters, a wire cutter, a mini-crowbar, a pry-bar, a 14-inch spike, a screw head and fencing pliers in a car belonging to Zaharov.

They also found a map with X's on both a hotel where Zaharov had stayed and the Radio Shack store where a robbery had taken place.

In 1999, court records indicate he was charged with theft under $5,000. He pled guilty to a lesser charge, served one day in jail and got a year of probation.

In 2000, he was charged with theft, breach of probation and possessing the tools of a break-in artist, according to court records. Those charges were withdrawn, but he was convicted in Ottawa in 2003 of theft under $5,000 and was fined $500.

In Toronto of the same year, Zaharov was charged with theft and assaulting a peace officer. Records show he was fined $3,000 and got a year of probation for the theft. The assault charge was withdrawn.

Real estate records indicate the pair also has a complex marital history.

The condo building at 1 Maison Parc Court in Thornhill where Natalia Feldman purchased a penthouse suite for $453,899 in 2005. Feldman and Zaharov are each facing one count of theft over $5,000 in New Brunswick and one count of theft over $5,000 in P.E.I. (Jesse Winter)

According to public records, Feldman purchased her Thornhill condo in 2005 for $452,899. By 2010, there was nearly $50,000 worth of writs against the property.

The couple lives on the penthouse floor of the eight-storey building. The off-white building, with its clean lines, archways and a fountain out front, is unassuming. But it boasts a number of amenities including 24-hour security, a recreation room, gym, indoor pool and sauna.

In 2007, the Thornhill condo was designated as the couple’s “matrimonial home.” In July 2011, Zaharov made an application to the Ontario Superior Court to that designation removed, claiming the couple were divorced. That record of the application was subsequently deleted from the file.

But just three months later, Feldman applied to the Land Registrar to have Zaharov added to the property title as 50-per-cent owner, listing him as “spouse.”

Most recently, this year Zaharov and Feldman were identified after video footage appeared to show a couple swapping a fake diamond for a $10,000 real one on Oct. 7 at a jewelry store in Saint John, N.B. Police in Charlottetown, P.E.I., allege they pulled the same sleight-of-hand at a store there, making off with another $20,000 in precious stones.

So far the couple is only facing charges regarding the alleged heists in Saint John and Charlottetown. But Nicole Shannon, co-owner of Kier Fine Jewelers in Whistler, B.C. said she’s convinced the pair also pulled off a bait-and-switch at her store back in August.

“Basically it was the same situation. We found that diamonds had been swapped out,” Shannon said. “We’re fairly confident it’s the same couple.”

Shannon said protecting against sleight-of-hand thefts like the one Feldman and Zaharov are accused of is difficult. Sales employees have to strike a balance, being vigilant without alienating customers by treating them like potential thieves.

“It is absolutely a fine line,” Shannon said. “Our business is built on trust. You want people to feel comfortable, and you want to treat them like family.”

Shannon said the jewelry industry is often reluctant to report thefts because of fears that reports will undermine customer trust, but she and Smith both decided to speak out, hoping to change that attitude.

“I think that it’s the other way around. If you talk about it, it makes them realize that you are onto it and are not an easy target,” she said.

Saint John police Sgt. Charles Breen said the missing stone from Smith’s store has not yet been recovered.

Both Smith and Shannon said their stones were laser-etched with unique identifying markers. If they’re found, they can be matched with and returned to their rightful owners.

Zaharov and Feldman will appear for a bail hearing in a New Brunswick court on Monday.

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